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Siouxsie and the Banshees

From HitStory, the pop encyclopedia of School of Rock · Artist

Siouxsie and the Banshees was a British rock band, founded in London in 1976 by the singer Siouxsie Sioux and the bass player Steven Severin. They met in September 1975 at a Roxy Music concert and followed the Sex Pistols from early 1976. With the guitarist John McKay and the drummer Kenny Morris the band grew into one of the first post-punk groups. Its first single, Hong Kong Garden, with a xylophone motif, reached the British top ten in 1978. The debut album The Scream followed in November of that year and was widely praised. The second album, Join Hands, was released in 1979. During the tour that followed, Morris and McKay left.

Music and breakthrough

With the guitarist John McGeoch and the drummer Budgie the group chose a new direction. The 1980 album Kaleidoscope used synthesizers, sitars and drum machines and reached fifth place in the British album chart. Happy House, Spellbound and the 1981 album Juju followed, then A Kiss in the Dreamhouse. In all they released eleven studio albums and thirty singles. Later they had hits such as Cities in Dust and Peek-a-Boo. With the 1988 album Peepshow they broke through in North America, and in 1991 Kiss Them for Me became a hit in the United States.

Influence

The music begins as sharp, dissonant post-punk and later becomes an atmospheric alternative pop. The style influenced gothic rock. Joy Division, The Cure, U2 and Radiohead named the band as an influence, as did Tricky and Jeff Buckley. The group shows how much room there was after punk for experiments with rhythm and sound.

Listening

Listening tip. Listen to Spellbound and notice the fast, stuttering guitar and the rolling drums. Notice how Siouxsie makes the tension palpable with her voice.

Discography

Studio albums

In School of Rock

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See also

Categories: ArtistsGothic rock